Please allow 5 business days for application materials to be added to your checklist.

First-year Students

Cornell’s application fee is $80. However, if the application fee presents a financial burden for you or your family, and you plan to apply for financial aid, you may qualify for a fee waiver.

To request a fee waiver on the Common Application:

1. Review Common App’s fee waiver eligibility criteria to confirm that you meet at least one of those criteria.
2. Select “Yes” when asked “Do you meet one or more of the Common Application fee waiver eligibility criteria?”
3. Provide your signature to complete the fee waiver request.
4. On the Cornell University questions, select “Yes, I am eligible for a fee waiver as outlined in the profile section of the Common Application” when asked “Are you eligible for an application fee waiver?”
5. Answer the additional fee waiver eligibility question in Cornell’s application questions. 

Please note that your fee waiver will be automatically applied, and you do not need to submit documentation to Cornell for your fee waiver request.

If you or your family are dealing with a financial hardship not included in the Common App fee waiver eligibility criteria or your family’s annual household income is below $75,000 USD, please contact our office at admissions@cornell.edu to request a fee waiver code.

Transfer Students

Applications must be submitted with the $80 application fee or fee waiver in order to be considered. Submitting the application and the $80 online fee or the transfer fee waiver begins the transfer admission process and should be done as soon as possible to avoid delays.

Please note that Cornell cannot process your transfer application without the $80 application fee or a transfer fee waiver. When you apply online, you must submit the application fee online, or you must mark the box indicating you are requesting a waiver.

Cornell is proud to serve students from all economic backgrounds. If submitting our application fee would result in a financial hardship for your family, you can apply for an application fee waiver by following the instructions on the Common Application AND submitting the NACAC Fee Waiver Form or a letter from a transfer advisor, the financial aid office at your current college/university, or a representative of a social service/community agency stating that the fee would cause financial hardship. Submissions can be sent by mail, or by email to admissions@cornell.edu.

For information on how to submit other materials for your application, please visit Application Material Submission Instructions.